Authority
Authority (from the Latin auctoritas) is a right conferred by recognized social position. Authority often refers to power vested in an individual or organization by the state. Authority can also refer to recognized expertise in an area of academic knowledge. An Authority (capitalized) refers to a governing body upon which certain authority (with lower case a) is vested. Authority in general refers to ones power, privilage, or influence over another of inferior rank, stature, age, physical prowess, position, experience, mental health, gender, ability, ect. Authority in various settings Politics In government, authority is the scope of an entity's legitimate power (Cline n.d.) when acting on behalf of the government. This power is conferred through officially recognized channels within the government, and represents a portion of the government's overall power. For example, a government might have the authority to execute criminals. The government could then contain a jury authorized to determine if a citizen is a criminal or a non-criminal; a judge authorized to sentence criminals to execution; and an executioner authorized to kill criminals who have been sentenced to execution. In contrast, a mob of citizens might have the power to do all of the above things, but still lack the authority because the actions would not be legitimate. Political authority can also be seen in situations that are typically considered apolitical. (Agarwal n.d.) In truth bestowing authority is a function of any social institution. A corporation, for example, must hire employees as a standard function of its existence. However, most of the corporation's members are not authorized to hire employees. This authority is passed down through the corporation to specific individuals without government involvement. This same phenomenon can be found in religious organizations, charities, fraternities, etc. Religion Recognizing when God has indicated His will requires the ability to understand how authority is expressed by a higher power. Direct statements and commands are most easily recognized as expressed authority. Seeing an example of someone acting in a way that meets with approval is helpful. Oftentimes, directions from the author require some inferring as the author implies what is required. Philosophy One should distinguish between power and authority. Both are involved with the use of agreement, power can relate to an armed criminal while authority may relate to a wise guru. The guru has authority but no power, while a criminal has power but no authority. If a military force loses their control, then they will lose authority. Academia A person (or group) may be considered an "authority" on a subject matter if their expertise is well established. This means that any statements the person makes, with regard to their field of expertise, will have the burden of proof in their favor. That is, if a professor of mathematics makes a statement about numbers, it will be assumed to be true in the absence of evidence to the contrary. This will also overrule any unsupported objections by an individual without such expertise. Professional scholars are common examples of this, but they are not the only examples. A carpenter might be considered an authority on wood, for example. Governmental agencies Every state has a number of institutions which exercise authority based on longstanding practices. Apart from this, every state sets up agencies which are competent in dealing with one particular matter. All this is set up within its charter. One example would be a port authority like the Port of London. They are usually created by special legislation and are run by a board of directors. Several agencies and institutions are created along the same lines and they exercise authority in certain matters. They are usually required to support themselves through property taxes or other forms of collection or fees for services. Psychology The Milgram experiment of 1961 demonstrated that people will follow an authority figure regardless of consequent effects on other people. Participants followed the orders of experimenters who represented the authority, and continued to give electric shocks to the learner who gave wrong answers to questions, even though the participants themselves qere not required to administer the shock. Controversy In contemporary social science, the nature of authority is a matter of debate. According to Michaels, in the Encyclopedia of Social Sciences, authority is the capacity, innate or acquired for exercising ascendancy over a group. Other scientists argue that authority is not a capacity but a relationship. It is sanctioned power, institutionalized power. In political philosophy, the jurisdiction of political authority, the location of sovereignty, the balancing of freedom and authority (cf. Cristi 2005), and the requirements of political obligations have been core questions from Plato and Aristotle to the present. In many democratic societies, there is an ongoing discussion regarding the legitimate extent of governmental authority in general. In the United States, for instance, there is a widespread belief that the political system as it was instituted by the Founding Fathers should accord the populace as much freedom as reasonable, and that government should limit its authority accordingly. Category:Page Category:People